$350 was a good and fair price for a used T-40 in good condition for years on end. Those days are long gone now, however. I stocked up while I could. 
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Peavey T-40 Bass?
- Thread starter cdseverance47
- Start date
Mine has been my main for about 8-9 years and I recently scored another t40 body to throw darkstars and an aluminum neck on. The weight isn't as bad as everyone says, at least not on mine.
T45 has only one pickup, fewer knobs, no switches and no pickguard, so that’s cheating
I was lucky to get $150 for mine…paid just under $300 for it brand new in 1980 (MSRP was $375).
I once saw a 5-string conversion on reverb and felt mildly tempted. It looked pretty slick, and the T-40 has just wide enough of a neck to pull it off.
Since I’ve tapped in, here’s me with mine. I wanted a bass made in the USA in 1980 (just like me! though at opposite ends of the Mississippi River) and found this one. I don’t expect to play it live much (for all the reasons mentioned above), though I might record with it (for all the reasons mentioned above). It just makes me happy to look at it or play it occasionally, so I don’t regret acquiring it.
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I bought in ‘78 for $250. I sold in ‘80 for $250. Seemed fair at the time.T45 has only one pickup, fewer knobs, no switches and no pickguard, so that’s cheating
I was lucky to get $150 for mine…paid just under $300 for it brand new in 1980 (MSRP was $375).
Mine was ash, but it was unpainted so it was probably one of the lighter ones. I never had any issue with weight, but it was just too fiddly for me. I’d find a sound I really liked but could never seem to get back to it if I went looking elsewhere. Not to mention my enabler made me a killer trade in deal against a beautiful new deep red Foundation with all gloss black hardware. I kinda missed the ability to get anything from goose farts on a muggy day to a blade dragged down a twisted steel rope, but the Foundation was no slouch in the tone department and it was sex on a stick instead of a stick in the mud.
My High School had one of these during my time there in the 90’s. I absolutely lusted over that bass. About a decade back I found one locally on Craigslist, a black one with the original plastic case.
Like a lot of people here my experience was that it was just too heavy so I parted ways with it pretty quickly. But damn if it didn’t sound like a dream, I remember putting a Steve Harris 77 set on it and the tone was bonkers!
Like a lot of people here my experience was that it was just too heavy so I parted ways with it pretty quickly. But damn if it didn’t sound like a dream, I remember putting a Steve Harris 77 set on it and the tone was bonkers!
I play seated at home, so weight for me is not an issue. But yes, they are heavy.
My 1982 T-40 and actual weight (12.52 lbs = 12 lbs 8.32 oz)
My 1982 T-40 and actual weight (12.52 lbs = 12 lbs 8.32 oz)
I own a T40..
I'm not a pick player but it absolutely sounds fantastic with a pick, almost like that is what it was made to do
My first bass was a natural finish T-40. Came with a good plastic case that was form-fitted. It's the bass I learned to play bass on. It wasn't as heavy as my next bass! Only reason I sold it was because I couldn't resist this shiny red Gibson Victory (that I still have) and I couldn't afford two basses. I have nothing but fond memories oftheT-40. I never needed to change the strings on it and it stayed in tune for eons.
Yeah I'm pretty familiar with early G&L basses too, and they can run heavy....10lb range often, even 11lb range in extreme cases. That said, you'll have to show me one that actually weighed 14 lbs. That much weight is double-neck territory and beyond what even the heaviest T-40's weigh. Fact is we didn't weigh guitars on a scale back then to know for sure. And you're exactly right...we didn't really care, either.
I’m not the one with the heavy G&L. As noted, my ‘80 ash-body L1K weighed 8.4 lbs. It was a feather after the T-40! But no,it was not something that even mattered at the time. What DID matter was the arm cut - couldn’t live with Tele-style slabs I’m afraid.Yeah I'm pretty familiar with early G&L basses too, and they can run heavy....10lb range often, even 11lb range in extreme cases. That said, you'll have to show me one that actually weighed 14 lbs. That much weight is double-neck territory and beyond what even the heaviest T-40's weigh. Fact is we didn't weigh guitars on a scale back then to know for sure. And you're exactly right...we didn't really care, either.
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